What I Learned From Selling My Honda Civic

My father and I idly chatted as we leaned against my beloved Civic, dubbed Wash. We co-owned the car because I needed his credit as I was building mine. Now, years later, it was time to let the car go to a new home. We reminisced as we waited for a potential buyer to arrive.

I didn’t realize at the time that by selling Wash, we were dooming him to a fate not dissimilar from its namesake, the ill-fated pilot of the Serenity.

Finding the Gold

We’d looked at plenty of lemons before finding Wash. Our trusted mechanic graciously inspected a Kia, several Hondas, and a Pontiac at minimal cost and told us in no certain terms that we were falling for the salesmen’s tricks. Just because they were shiny and drove well didn’t mean they weren’t dying inside! In our bargain shopping, we seemed destined to be stuck with a car with decaying parts and, more importantly in Florida, no A/C.

Then, we saw Wash. A modest tawny gold-ish color with a classic shape, he wasn’t as flashy as the others. Like his namesake, he was quirky, yet unassuming.

Only a few scratches and a cracked hubcap. The passenger-side door had to be unlocked from the inside. That was it. Our mechanic signed off on it with the warning that we’d just have to treat the eleven-year-old car with care.